The present invention relates to a self-service terminal, such as an automated teller machine.
Self-service terminals are commonly used for services, such as banking services, where a number of different types of media may be dispensed from or deposited in the SST by a user. For example, if a bank customer wishes to deposit some money into their account, they may have the option of depositing single bank notes, multiple bank notes simultaneously, a bunch of bank notes in a deposit envelope or a cheque. A problem with existing mechanisms is that overloading of the deposit mechanism by a user can cause internal damage and/or jams to the ATM. This often results in having to close down the ATM and call in service personnel to fix any blockage. Clearly this is undesirable, for the user, the bank and the maintenance company. Hence, there is a need for an improved deposit mechanism.
As well as the deposit mechanism, there is a need for an improved dispensing mechanism. This is because currently, one technique for fraudulently removing money from an automated teller machine is to request that a specific amount of cash be dispensed, but then only remove a portion of the amount actually dispensed, and leave the remaining amount in the dispensing slot, as shown in FIG. 1. Most teller machines are operable to retract cash that is left in the dispensing slot back into the terminal after a pre-determined time has elapsed and then credit the user's account with the initially requested amount. This arrangement is provided because every now and then honest customers genuinely forget to remove their cash from the machine. However, a disadvantage of this is that in the case where a portion of the amount dispensed is removed, and then the remaining cash is retracted, the user's account is credited with the full amount, not the amount that is retracted.